Student Athlete Feature By

Lily Cowder first started soccer at the age of six. She grew up watching her older sister play and wanted to play too. To Lily, soccer is a way to clear her head. Cowder is a a goalie, and says, “I grew to love it because it allowed me to watch and play from a different perspective.” She also enjoys diving for the ball. Lily continues to play soccer even with constant injuries because she loves the game and always wants to keep on playing. “I just enjoy the sport too much to quit, it doesn’t matter if I’m the absolute best because I know there’s always someone that will surpass me, but if I enjoy it that’s all that matters,” she says. However, her journey with the sport came to a halt when the pandemic hit. She stopped playing from fifth to seventh grade and made her comeback in eighth grade after moving from Pennsylvania to Ithaca, where she led as a captain. When Lily left Boynton for Ithaca High School, she joined the Girls JV soccer team and found success as a goalie. The past two seasons have been rough for Cowder mainly due to injuries, but she is persevering, trying to prepare for next year, and keeping an open mind.